The truth is, in the 21st century, laws and regulations make it sure that employees are in greater charge of managing themselves, and the use of employee empowerment, as well as its misuse, is common like in all other things. And then again, there are some of us who believe, that since we are rarely paid in proportion to our efforts, we should rather put in efforts only in proportion to payments received.
There can be an ethical debate on the issue, nevertheless there are people in workplaces who are smart workers, finish their given jobs early, have time on their hands, but keep up an appearance of being busy and not open for more tasks, because they refuse to give too much more than what they think their employers deserve. In fact, since the recession, doing this has become easier because the higher up we go along the hierarchy, the more tensed is the superior to meet personal and project deadlines, and the overseer has less time to oversee. Also there are times, frequency of which has risen in certain workplaces, when we find that the actual amount of delegate-able work the employer has on hand has substantially decreased. There has been lay-offs a plenty, and nobody wants to put their heads on the block by drawing attention to the fact that they have less work on their hands than sufficient to keep them fully engaged.
As I said earlier, there can be debates about whether it is ethical or not to control the amount of work delivered to an employer or deliver only in consonance with going rates for similar work in the market, but whiling away spare time is definitely unproductive. So, it heads back to the question of what to do, when you have nothing to do at office.
Do not waste the valuable time of your life. If you feel that you have finished delivering the expectations of your employer according to your parameters and have spare time on hand, then use it productively. Even star performers are known to while away time by idly browsing the internet without focus or keep playing video games in the name of relieving stress.
Now, you might believe that star performers are the last people to while away time at office, and again you might be wrong. Ever wondered why all research shows that star performers want greater flexibility to manage their own time, thoroughly resent micromanagement, and are always ready to be accountable for their assignments but not for their time? The fact is that people do not become star performers just by over working themselves, but by doing smart work and delivering quality in alignment with company objectives and by exceeding expectations. Such abilities only indicate skill levels that can move mountains. You can hardly expect such people to slog away for a pittance just because times are bad. Bad times have reduced jobs and salaries, but the recession hasn't reduced the number of mouths to feed, nor decreased the costs of things. Star performers, more than anybody else, are aware of the value of their work and efforts, and feel reluctant to give more unless they receive an honest deal. This is why they zealously guard their time and demand greater flexibility and autonomy in managing their assignments. Star performers actually finish their work faster than anybody can even guess and usually have more spare time on their hands than others.
So, when you do have spare time at office, don't waste it for idle recreation but use it to develop yourself, your skills, and your career goals. While doing freelance work on office-time is definitely unethical, building your internet presence on different networks and forums is not. You can put your spare time in office to good use to build and bolster your presence across online networks; give your employer a bit of publicity in the process, as also research your field for opportunities for both yourself and your employer. Whatever you ultimately do with your spare time, please don't while it away, and do something planned and focused to aid you in your career.
